birdman and betty bomber, an amazing duo

This month was my first anniversary as a JAVAFLIXian!
The group has grown greatly since my first adventure into their little venue.
I had joined the group in February of last year, but saw my first film there last March. It was a foreign film I had never seen, set in Saudi Arabia. At the time, I had a student (Rowaida Q.) from that country and wanted to learn more about it. The film featured a strong-minded young girl, "Wadjda", and her quest to own a bicycle. I had liked that there were only three of us there, that blustery evening. That made the experience more intimate, as if we were instant friends.
Tonight, I watched "Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)" for the second time. That was fine, though, as I had missed the first twenty minutes or so the first time I saw it. I didn't know just how vital those minutes might have been, so why not share the complete experience with twenty (and more!) fellow JAVAFLIXians on this lovely, and special, spring night?
There were quite a few folks I knew there, too. Roy Wood was present, arms ready to hug! Very nice! Barbara was there, this time with her writer friend, Lanie. Bonnie Blue and her man, Don, were there and so ready for the discussion afterward! She is so very smart! Yvonne and Kimberley and Shawna were present, too, each with new friends in tow. Joe, the peace Guy, was even in town!
Such a great discussion, too! We all stated our names and how long we had been JAVAFLIXians and then launched into a short evaluation of the movie. Some had seen it for the second time, so they gave the best insights.
For example, did you know there was a Birdman in the comic books before there was a Batman? I had not known that. (Thanks, Don!)
Did you know the director had said he wouldn't make the film unless Michael Keaton was in it? I had not known that. (Thanks, Bonnie!) I completely agree with the director, by the way. Given Keaton's identity as a certain superhero (I'm Batman!) and the difficulty of escaping the fate of being typecast as only that character, who else could even have been tapped for the role?
I also caught, on this viewing, the importance of the short-story writer, Raymond Carver, to the story arc. (Again, I had missed the first twenty minutes of the movie the first time around.) In the intro of the film, before anything begins, the inscription on Carver's tomb appears on the screen.

:LATE FRAGMENT

And did you get what
you wanted from this life, even so?

I did.

And what did you want?

To call myself beloved, to feel myself
beloved on the earth.

Later, we learn that the superhero movie star has held onto an autographed cocktail napkin from Carver. He credits that autographed praise with launching him into his acting career. His costar in the play, a jaded stage actor, points out that the choice of paper indicates that Carver was drunk.
Ouch.
That was especially painful because the movie star had selected Carver's "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" as the vehicle for his entry into stage acting. Suddenly, everything he had believed in seemed to be in jeopardy of having been false all those many years.
There were a lot of folks there for the very first time. Perhaps they had been attracted by the gleam of the Oscars? Perhaps. Maybe they will return and become participants? Maybe!

After the discussion was over, Bonnie and Don suggested we adjourn to Betty Bombers for a bite to eat. The place had been closed for almost a year, after a bad fire had revealed building violations. Now, just in time for the St. Patrick's Day revelers, they had reopened with a limited menu. Also, they now took plastic, instead of just cash. Hooray!
So, Joe and I and Barbara followed Bonnie and Don, fetching Roy from the Sentient Bean along our short two-block walk. Very nice evening it was for a stroll, too! Simply glorious and warm!
The chili-cheese fries were a bit hit with Joe and Bonnie! I had the Ultimate Chicken Club, on Bonnie's recommendation, and found it did, indeed, get better with every bite! I don't recall what the others had, except Roy had his usual near-beer.
Oh, yes! And I had pecan pie!
What a wonderful way to celebrate an anniversary!